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Knights of the Stash

Wow, this season has just FLOWN by! Here we are at the end of Season Three, and it is definitely one of my favorite episodes yet!

The first transaction was truly unique: a Stretch Hulk figure. Back in the late 70’s, Kenner had released a line of “stretch” toys headlined by Stretch Armstrong. The novelty was that the figure (decked out like a pro wrestler) could be stretched out to four or five feet, thanks to it’s body being made out of latex and its insides filled with gelled corn-syrup. Then came Stretch Hulk, along with Stretch Plastic Man, produced by Mego. And then came the lawsuits. It’s pretty obvious that Mego was trying to cash in on Kenner’s success, right down to the packaging, but lets face it, by 1980, the action figure market was DOMINATED by Star Wars, and no one really cared about the Stretch toys until YEARS later. I think Walt made a really fair offer, but the guy obviously couldn’t be ( I can’t help myself!) FLEXIBLE!

So, free tickets to a Renaissance Fair…who wouldn’t be stoked? Walt Flanagan, that’s who. Oh, and of course Bryan just has to pile on the misery, but we talked them both into going. Whenever Jay Mewes comes to town, we are all in for some laughs.

The John Romita Jr. Splash page…it truly is a thing of beauty. If you have never been able to see a comic book artist’s original pencils up close and in person, you’re missing out. While the finished product captures the essence of what the writer is trying to convey on the page, the rawness of an unfinished piece is amazing. JRjr is one of our generations finest illustrators, especially on Spider-Man. His work takes on an added luster when you put it side-by-side with his father’s (also a legendary Spidey artist) and see how similar, yet unique each gentleman’s perspective is. I am a huge fan of his and Walt made a great deal for this piece.

I was NOT a fan of the original Battlestar Galactica…it felt entirely to derivative of the Star Wars franchise, which it most certainly was. So when the rebooted Sci-Fi Channel Battlestar Galactica started, I had little-to-no interest in watching it. That is, until someone whose opinion I trusted loaned me his DVD copy of the miniseries. It didn’t take long to hook me. One of my favorite throw-aways was the Pyramid games, and just seeing the equipment, ratty before, just get more and more worn and used up. These were some cool props, but unfortunately Sports memorabilia, especially for a sport that never REALLY existed, has a limited shelf-life, and I think these went over that time.

About the Ren Fair: it was actually cool to go through the tests of Knighthood. Each of us excelled at one thing or another, but I’ll have you note that I was the only one of our group to best a Vixen! I know Walt and Bryan thought it was corny, Ming took it WAY too seriously, but Jay and I had a good time throughout. I’m amazed he volunteered to take tomatoes in the mush, though.

To paraphrase Kevin at the end of each episode, That’s gonna wrap it up for this Season of Comic Book Men…I want to thank you all for watching and reading along with my blog. As you may have heard, We will be back with a Season Four, and on behalf of Kev, Ming, Walt, Bryan and myself, I thank you kindly.